Traditional lessons in economics seem to have less of a place in this world when they fail to change students who are often more interested in the latest viral content and influencers. However, it could be the best day for educators who recognise this and speak now. They might turn to unexpected allies, such as pop culture icon Taylor Swift or maybe even social media influencer James Stephen Donaldson, better known to millions online as MrBeast.
Both stars are globally celebrated not only for their fame but for their remarkable business acumen. A new wave of research suggests that using their stories might be the key to engaging Generation Z students, the so-called Zoomers, in the subject of economics. Gen Z is demographically the generation born 1997 to 2012. Swift and Donaldson were born in 1989 and 1988 respectively and themselves are mid-generation Millennials (Gen Y, born 1981 to 1996). Millennials are usually considered the digital natives, individuals who grew up in a world where personal computing and communications had become almost ubiquitous.
Research in the International Journal of Pluralism and Economics Education suggests that an innovative approach to teaching economics might focus on how such celebrities, which many students already admire, develop their businesses. For instance, Swift’s record-breaking Eras Tour grossed more than $1 billion, while MrBeast’s YouTube “empire”, which includes entrepreneurial ventures such as his Feastables brand, offers real-world examples of economics in action. From pricing strategies to branding, these two have built formidable enterprises, making them ideal case studies to explain otherwise abstract economic concepts.
Educators know all too well that engaging case studies are important in navigating the treacherous world of teaching economics, where a blank space might disenfranchise even the keenest student. What sets apart a method that focuses on such well-known figures as case studies, is that they have a ready-made resonance with Gen Z. This generation was raised on digital content and stereotypically has a short attention span and yet prizes entrepreneurship and innovation.
Even in their wildest dreams, students in a typical high school economics class will be taught little more than equations and theoretical models. Even if all they had to do was stay, this can seem distant and irrelevant to many students. Call it what you want, but by incorporating Swift and MrBeast into the curriculum, the teacher’s new end game is to illustrate complex economic ideas, such as supply and demand, monetization strategies, and market engagement, in the afterglow of personalities they admire and follow closely or at the very least know a lot about. It can be an epiphany.
The work hints at an educational gold rush, where this shift in focus could transform the way economics is taught and how well students understand and learn about the subject. To cut a long story shot, by moving beyond dry textbooks, a pop culture approach might draw into economics a diverse and inclusive group of students.
It doesn’t take a mastermind to navigate the labyrinth of thinking on how this all might come to more than sweet nothing. Many young people already admire the entrepreneurial journeys of their favourite influencers and celebrities. If educators can demonstrate that economics is more than spreadsheet and Wall Street, then the creativity, audience engagement, and smart financial decisions of those celebrities will appear almost bejewelled and show how economics is part of all our lives, it is, in a sense, everyday alchemy.
Dahlberg, K.H., DeWind, S., Geerling, W. and Mateer, G.D. (2024) ‘Behind the billions: how Taylor Swift and MrBeast can be used to teach economics’, Int. J. Pluralism and Economics Education, Vol. 15, No. 1, pp.69–89.